Can Botox Get You Out Of A DUI?

  • Posted on: Nov 5 2010
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A strange Botox-related story has been recently published on MSNBC.com.  A Canadian woman, Patti Ann Moore, was recently pulled over by Canadian police for allegedly drinking and driving.  When the police officer attempted to perform a breathalyzer test on her, she huffed and puffed but just couldn’t get her lips around the breathalyzer.  She was subsequently charged with refusing to give a breath sample.  Moore has admitted to drinking and driving that night but claims that recent Botox injections have left her unable to purse her lips, and therefore unable to wrap her lips around the breathalyzer blow apparatus.  Last week a Vancouver judge tossed out the charge after a letter from her plastic surgeon confirmed her claims.

My comments on this case are included in the MSNBC.com article, which can be found here.

Botox is most often used to treat the wrinkles of the upper face, including the forehead, glabella (frown lines), and crow’s feet.  But where else do we cosmetically inject Botox?  Here is a list:

1. Around the mouth – for ‘smokers’ lines.  I almost never inject here, for the reasons given in the MSNBC.com article.

2. Platysmal bands – neck bands caused by muscles.  I occasionally inject here, with so-so results.

3. Masseter muscle – to thin the jawline.  Works really well.  Check out the photos on my website here.

4. Gummy smile – injections near the nose may help drop the upper lip. 

5. Golf ball chin – See Gordon Ramsay.

6. Lift the corners of the mouth – Botox can be injected into the muscle that pulls the corners of the mouth down, causing them to be elevated a bit.

7. Elevate the eyebrows – A little Botox injected under the eyebrows can often result in a mild lift… but puts the eyelid at risk of drooping.

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Posted in: Dr. Anthony Youn in the Media

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